Good thinking here resulted in many solutions. Well done George Vassilev, year 6, Rosebank Primary School, Leeds; Natasha Kholgade, age 14, Grade IX, from an Indian school in Lagos, Nigeria; Kevin Feighan, Paul Magee, Christopher Jordan, Gerard Dempsey, Gerard Marley, Michael Byrne, Mathew Magee, Gerard Carson and Gavin Boyle, members of the St Patrick's College (Belfast) Maths Club; Chong Ching Tong, Chan Hei Leong, Chen Wei Jian, Ng Yan Shun and Chua Zhi Yu, age 12, Lim Zi Heng, age 13, Lim Qing Ru, age 15 River Valley High School, Singapore; Cleo Barrable of Forres Academy, Scotland; Michael Brooker, age 9, home-educated; Liz Garthwaite, Briony Pollard, Laura Lancaster & Freya Porteous from The Mount School, York and Katie Robinson, Louise Howes and Rebecca Pickering, Bourne Grammar school.

The village of Much Puzzling has a baker, a brewer and a butcher. The baker's wife remarked that these three jobs were held by a Mr Baker, a Mr Brewer and a Mr Butcher but no man held the job corresponding to his surname. Mrs Brewer had told the baker's wife that each of the men married the sister of one of the other men and no man married a girl of the same name as his occupation! This solution came from Wan Ming Feng, age 16, River Valley High School, Singapore.

Conditions:

• ¹No man held the job corresponding to his surname.
• ²No man married a girl of the same name as his occupation.
• ³Writer was talking to baker's wife, and she mentioned that Mrs. Brewer talked to her before; therefore Mrs. Brewer can't be the baker's wife.
• ⁴Since Mr. Brewer can't be a brewer or a baker, so he is the butcher.
• ⁵Since Mr. Brewer is a butcher, his wife's maiden name can't be Butcher; therefore Mrs. Brewer's maiden name is Baker.

Conclusion:

Mr. Brewer is a butcher and his wife's maiden name was Miss Baker.